I've used Adderall twice. The first day that I've taken it, the results have been immediate and amazing. It was like I was a new person, or some brilliant neurologist had reached into my brain and clicked the "on" switch. The next day, though, the reaction was not so good.

I think that I've figured out why. When I first used Adderall I was taking amitriptyline and trazodone to help me sleep (prior to, and unrelated to, Adderall). I found that my sleep improved while on Adderall, and so started cutting back until I had completely eliminated trazodone. I had to stop the Adderall due to hypertension (related and unrelated to Adderall), but having conquered hypertension through exercise started taking Adderall last week.

I had cut down amitriptyline to 150mg, from 200mg, and again, the first day was great, the next day not so great. On the next day, I realized that I felt a bit hungover. The day after that, same thing, and it finally occurred to me that what I had was that wicked amitriptyline hangover (that I haven't had in over a decade, so that's why it took a while to notice it). I increased the Adderall to my prescribed dose (20mg 2x per day), and found that the hangover was worse the next day.

I've searched the web as best as I'm able, and have come up with very little information, but have seen in a couple of different places that amitriptyline doses might have to be adjusted if taking Adderall.

I see my psychiatrist on Tuesday, but want to present him with more than just my anecdotal observations. Has anyone else ever experienced anything like this? If you have, I'd be most grateful to hear your experiences.

I took amitriptyline 10-25mg for 3 months because of migraines but like you I found it better as a sleep aid, you may be taking too much.

I suggest stopping the amitriptyline until your next appointment. upping your Adderall dosage when it's working isn't wise your over stimulating your brain which is why you felt hungover the next day it's called a "speed hangover"

alternative sleep aids that are commonly prescribed for insomnia from stimulants are Seroquel and Melatonin.

you can also control hypertension with Beta Blockers and Water Pills however you may have to get them from your family physician as i'm not sure psychiatrist will prescribe them.

I took amitriptyline 10-25mg for 3 months because of migraines but like you I found it better as a sleep aid, you may be taking too much.

I suggest stopping the amitriptyline until your next appointment. upping your Adderall dosage when it's working isn't wise your over stimulating your brain which is why you felt hungover the next day it's called a "speed hangover"

alternative sleep aids that are commonly prescribed for insomnia from stimulants are Seroquel and Melatonin.

you can also control hypertension with Beta Blockers and Water Pills however you may have to get them from your family physician as i'm not sure psychiatrist will prescribe them.

- Christine

Christine, what did you mean by overstimulating your brain? I've taken 22.5mg of IR (7.5 x 3) over 2 hours and haven't felt a thing! The first time I took it, and accidentally chewed/bite the pill, I felt ALL of the positive effects adderall (focus, clarity, talkativeness, alert, etc...). I haven't been getting those results or anything since :/.

Thank!

Rbrind, I can relate! It stopped working after the first day, now I'm trying to figure out what I ate/took on the first day that made the addy work. So far I've tried the L-Tyrosine but that wasn't what was missing (took 1000mg before bed, 500mg after waking up & my addy 1 hour later). The only other thing I can think of was caffeine, I probably had 800mg of caffeine a few hours before the addy :/.

everybody's brain is different some require more stimulation than others, if you take too much Amphetamines you will speed.

regarding hypertension your chances of actually stroking out on Amphetamines is very miniscule almost all cardiac related deaths on Amphetamines are due to a overlooked or misdiagnosed heart condition.

Thanks for the comments - but my sleep problems go way back, and melatonin alone won't touch it - I currently take melatonin in addition to everything i take.

I'd have to look more at Seroquel. I noticed that one use was for biploar, and I take Depakote for that, and feel pretty good on it.

What I had may have hard something to do with Adderall, but it felt to me that the Adderall was increasing the levels of amitriptyline - hence the warning on sites saying that if you take Adderall, you may have to adjust the dose of amitriptyline (though those sites never say if it is an agonist or an antagonist, which is frustrating).

The most common side effect of quetiapine is sedation.[22] It is prescribed specifically (off-label) for this effect in patients with sleep disorders. It is one of the most sedating of all antipsychotics,

not everybody who takes Seroquel in combination with a Stimulant is bipolar.

you may need Sleep therapy. if you drop the Amitriptyline don't replace it with an over the counter antihistamines it will make your insomnia worst.

I appreciate the comments about sleep, but I've been with a psychiatrist, treating it for about eighteen years. I've had multiple tests - really, the whole shebang. Elavil is the best drug for me, with regard to sleep. I mean no offense, but I'm not looking for medical advice about sleep aids - I'm well covered there, and have tried virtually all of them. The tricyclics have always worked best for me. When adding Adderall, the odd side effect of not needing to take as much medication to help me sleep occurred. That's part of what I'm trying to figure out here.

I'm really looking for people who have taken amitriptyline and Adderall, as I want to see if anyone is having the side effects that I think I'm having.

I'm tying it to the amitriptyline - and I may be wrong - because the first day that I take Adderall everything's grand. When I take amitriptyline at night, Adderall the next day doesn't function as well. I take all of my morning med's with Adderall that first day and it's fine. It's after taking my night meds that I see a problem.

how many days have you been on adderall? it's probably the adderall it doesn't work for everybody. if anything the amitriptyline should increase the effectiveness of adderall. on tuesday discuss dexedrine.

Can you point me to specific data that indicates the relationship between Adderall and amitriptyline? That's what I'm really looking for.

I'm not taking Adderall at all right now. It's been my goal to try and reduce the amount of amitriptyline that I'm taking, so I figure one thing at a time. Tomorrow I'm going to call Shire Pharmaceuticals and see if they have any data pertinent to my question.

I tried Ritalin and Dexedrine in the 90's. No go for either. Neither worked well, and both had uncomfortable side effects. The only thing that's ever really worked, and done so amazingly, is Adderall.

There's no interaction between Adderall and Elavil (amitriptyline) that would cause Elavil's sleep-inducement properties to potentiate. Nor is there an interaction of that sort between Adderall and Depakote, which was something I started to look into prior to my appointment, as I was coming up with nothing researching Elavil and Adderall contraindications (specific to sleep). There is an issue with Adderall and Depakote, or, really, Adderall and anti-convulsants, when the anti-convulsants are being used not for bipolar but for seizure control. Adderall apparently lowers the seizure threshold. Don't quote me on that across the board, though. I only checked Depakote and Lamictal.

From my psychiatrist's explanation, I came to understand that Adderall is so very effective at dumping out the "wake center" of the brain, norepinephrine and one other that I can't recall, that it can, in some people, set them up to sleep by the end of the day. His patient population is heterogeneous, so he sees just about everything. Some patients complain of fatigue in the evening while on Adderall, as the Adderall has hyped them up and so they may have overexerted themselves, or the "wake center" has been so effectively dumped that they're primed and ready to sleep.

Going with that, it seems to easily explain why I needed less and less Elavil to help me sleep. And I continue to need less and less. When I started all of this I was taking 200mg of Elavil and 100mg of Trazodone to sleep - and Depakote for bipolar, which is a sedating anti-convulsant (as opposed to Lamictal, which is activating). I've completely eliminated Trazodone, and am down to 140mg of Elavil. I hope to get down to 100mg. That had been my plan regardless, and it's fortuitous that Adderall is helping me rely on fewer medications - the fewer I have to take, the better, as far as I'm concerned.

Rbrind, I can relate! It stopped working after the first day, now I'm trying to figure out what I ate/took on the first day that made the addy work. So far I've tried the L-Tyrosine but that wasn't what was missing (took 1000mg before bed, 500mg after waking up & my addy 1 hour later). The only other thing I can think of was caffeine, I probably had 800mg of caffeine a few hours before the addy :/.

From what I've been told, and I'm not an expert, so please take that into consideration, is that Adderall's somewhat manic effects - feeling full of energy, ready to do a million things - can wear off, but the true ADHD stuff, organization, focus, etc., remains.

regarding hypertension your chances of actually stroking out on Amphetamines is very miniscule almost all cardiac related deaths on Amphetamines are due to a overlooked or misdiagnosed heart condition.

- Christine

I don't know your background, but your profile didn't indicate involvement with the medical profession (doctor or pharmacist) - therefore I think it's a little dangerous to make an "almost all" statement like that. My psychiatrist doesn't agree with that at all, especially in Adult AD/HD where people are being treated with amphetamines and they're in their 50s or older.

Granted, regular cardiovascular exercise will always help keep things in check, though even that isn't a perfect failsafe. One needs to be very careful in monitoring hypertension if they're taking amphetamines. Your comment almost makes it seem as if people shouldn't be overly concerned - and they should at least pay close attention to their blood pressure and other cardiac levels.

I mean no disrespect by my reply, I'm just concerned that it's not a complete answer, and people need to know that.

d2 k1
800 mg of caffeine is like 6 to 8 cups of strong espresso I think
120 mg a cup is a fair estimate
My god, you took this before the addy
no wonder you dont feel the adderall
either you have a caffeine tolerance from hell or are speeding out of your brain already
surely you overestimated your cafeeine intake?

and rbrindlet
its amazing how some wish to lump amphetamine as a dangerous cardiac drug but when you ask for evidence of significantly increased mortality due to cardiovascular issues in people using amphetamines therapeutically has it ever been produced? (in any age group?)